A Boxing Fan’s Guide to a November to Remember in the Sport of Boxing

By Jose “Silensachi” Batista

This year in boxing has been disappointing. There have been numerous big fights that were not able to get made. We have seen fights such as Gennady Golovkin Vs Saul “Canelo” Alvarez or against Daniel Jacobs not materialize.
HBO has not provided us the top-quality fights that we were frequently accustomed to on their cable network in years past. Premier Boxing Champions has failed to impress this year even though they have serious talent on their roster. Talent is being wasted if they aren’t matching up their best fighters with more consistency.

Though we have had a lackluster year up until this point the show must go on. October doesn’t have any major fights left, however November promises to be perhaps the most exciting of the entire calendar year up until now. I guess the rain does indeed come before the rainbow.
November starts off with ShoBox: The New Generation tripleheader on Friday, November 4, live on SHOWTIME at 10:30 p.m. ET/PT from Omega Products International Event Center in Corona, California. The main event will feature undefeated 2012 Olympic Bronze Medalist Taras “Real Deal” Shelestyuk. This should be a good appetizer to start the month rolling.

The next night on November 5, Top Rank will produce and distribute their own PPV. The event will feature four world title fights on the telecast. Manny Pacquiao will face Jessie Vargas in the main event for the WBO welterweight title.

The matchup is compelling as some would argue that Pacquiao is not the same fighter he used to be, while others believe he should handle Vargas easily. It makes for a good scrap on top of all the other action on the undercard.

Zou Shiming who has a huge following in China will fight for a vacant WBO flyweight title. One of boxings most exciting young fighters Oscar Valdez will also be on the card to defend his WBO featherweight title.

Nonito Donaire squares off against Jessie Magdaleno for the WBO junior featherweight title. This fight should be a great one as Donaire is a seasoned veteran and may be too experienced for the young fighter. This bout has the potential to steal the show as it may be a passing of the guard type of fight.

The following week in November 12 Danny Garcia returns to the ring in Philadelphia against Samuel Vargas in a bout that has not been well received. Garcia could be fighting better opponents; however, it was reported by a PBC spokesperson that he is indeed fighting Keith Thurman in March. It is still good to see Garcia in the ring since he has only fought once in 2016.

The undercard is solid, better than the main event in fact. The young Jarrett “Swift” Hurd will be in action. Hurd is an exciting young fighter at the junior middleweight division looking to make a name for himself. The sleeper bout of the card is Javier Fortuna as he takes on the undefeated Omar Douglas. Douglas is a tough fighter who has a tendency to fight within close range, this could make for an explosive battle as Fortuna also has a mean streak.

November 19 features what could very well be the biggest fight of the entire 2016 calendar year in terms of fighters with a big name. Sergey Kovalev will meet Andre Ward at Las Vegas live on HBO PPV. This fight could have some implications on the top tier of the pound for pound list. The undercard to the main event is an absolute joke with fighters of very little profile or even remotely significant; however, beggars can’t be choosers and this main event is one of the better options out there.

The following week on November 26 Vasyl Lomachenko meets Nicholas Walters for Lomachenko’s WBO junior lightweight title. This is a fight that had previously been discussed and will finally come to fruition. On paper, it is a matchup of excellent quality and brings the asses to the couches for great action on the HBO network. Lomachenko is a great talent with superior boxing skills whereas Walters packs legit punching power which makes this an impressive bout of boxer Vs puncher.

The fights for November won’t make up for the potential great year that 2016 could have been were it not for the lack of inconsistent quality match making from all entities involved in the sport. What November does do however is build momentum into December which will also features a slate of good quality bouts. The month of November is shaping up to be a heavy feast of fisticuffs, the boxing world needs this now more than ever.

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